As defined in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, there’s plenty of ways that you can confront your negative thought patterns.

Many addicts ‘treat’ their underlying mental health issues with substances. They might not realize that there’s a mental illness underneath the surface, or that they are even displaying the signs and symptoms They run through the same thought patterns that make them feel terrible, like they are a worthless person. And they keep telling themselves that, and the thoughts reinforce what they believe to be true (but isn’t).

Twisted thought patterns are all very similar: “I’m a failure,” “I’ll never be able to do it,” “Everyone hates me,” “I’m the worst,” “I always fail,” and so on. They are forms of overgeneralizing, or making a mountain out of a molehill. No matter the degree of your addiction, you are not a failure. Even if you’ve ‘failed’ at continuous recovery a number of times, you’ll always be able to stand up and move forward. Every person in recovery is capable of doing that. It doesn’t matter how many times you’ve slipped up or relapsed.

But how do you specifically fight these types of thoughts? It can seem impossible when you’re deep into your addiction and the negative thoughts feed your addiction as much as they prevent your recovery. However, getting over these thoughts and learning to incorporate positive ones is still possible, and it’s an important element of rehab.

Some who try to work on their negative thought patterns might keep it simple—telling themselves NO when the thought resurfaces. You can even say “NO” out loud. After a while, when those thoughts resurface, you’ll have taught yourself how to fight them instinctively. You will treat yourself better, become more of a positive person, and learn to fight the thoughts that feed your addiction, all at the same time.